Family

Yar'adua was born in Katsina state, Nigeria.^[6] His father, Musa Yar'Adua, was a Minister for Lagos in the First Republic and held the chieftaincy title of Matawalle (custodian of the royal treasury) of the Katsina Emirate, a title which Yar'Adua inherited. His paternal grandfather, Malam Umaru, had also held the title of Matawallen Katsina, while his paternal grandmother, Binta, a Fulani from the Sullubawa clan, was a princess of the Katsina Emirate and a sister of Emir Muhammadu Dikko.^[7][8]

Yar'Adua married Turai Yar'Adua of Katsina state in 1975;^[9] they had seven children (five daughters and two sons) and several grandchildren.^[10] Their daughter, Zainab, is married to the former Kebbi state governor, Usman Dakingari.^[11]

Another daughter, Nafisa is married to Isa Yuguda, a former governor of Bauchi state. Her sister Maryam is married to Ibrahim Shema, Yar'Adua's successor as Katsina state governor.^[12][13] Yar'Adua was also married to Hauwa Umar Radda from 1992 to 1997, and they had two children.^[14]

Education

He started his education at Rafukka Primary School in 1958, and moved to Dutsinma Boarding Primary School in 1962. He attended the Government College at Keffi from 1965 until 1969. In 1971 he received a Higher School Certificate from Barewa College.^[15] He attended Ahmadu Bello University in Zaria from 1972 to 1975, where he obtained a bachelor's degree in Education and Chemistry, and then returned in 1978 to pursue a master's degree in Analytical Chemistry.^[15]

Party politics

During the Second Republic (1979–83), Yar'Adua was a member of the leftist People's Redemption Party, while his father was briefly the National Vice Chairman of the National Party of Nigeria. During the transition programme of General Ibrahim Babangida to the Third Republic, Yar'Adua was one of the foundation members of the Peoples Front of Nigeria with other members such as Atiku Abubakar, Baba Gana Kingibe, Bola Tinubu, Sabo Bakin Zuwo, Wada Abubakar, Abdullahi Aliyu Sumaila, Abubakar Koko and Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, a political association under the leadership of his elder brother, the late Major-General Shehu Musa Yar'Adua. That association later formed the Social Democratic Party. Yar'Adua was a member of the 1988 Constituent Assembly. He was a member of the party's National Caucus and the Nigerian Social Democratic Party's (SDP) State Secretary in Katsina. He contested for the governorship position in the 1991 election, but lost to Saidu Barda, the candidate of the National Republican Convention and an ally of Ibrahim Babangida.

Governor of Katsina

In 1999, Yar'Adua won the Katsina state governorship election.^[7] He was the first governor to publicly declare his assets.^[18] Yar'Adua's administration saw various developments in the state. Katsina became the fifth northern Nigerian state to adopt sharia, or Islamic law.^[19] Education was prioritised and several schools were built in local areas. Yar'Adua also delivered on his promise of running an efficient public administration, with corruption significantly hampered. In 2003, he was re-elected for a second term in office and his successor was Ibrahim Shema.

2007 presidential election

Between 16–17 December 2006, Yar'Adua was chosen as the presidential candidate of the ruling People's Democratic Party for the April 2007 election, receiving 3,024 votes from party delegates; his closest rival, Rochas Okorocha, received 372 votes.^[20] Yar'Adua's success in the primary election was attributed to the support of incumbent President Olusegun Obasanjo;^[20][21] At the time of his nomination, he was an obscure figure on the national stage, and has been described as a "puppet" of Obasanjo, who could not have won the nomination under fair circumstances.^[21] Shortly after his nomination, Yar'Adua chose Goodluck Jonathan, governor of Bayelsa state, as his vice-presidential candidate.^[20][21] Another view regarding the support he received from President Olusegun Obasanjo is that, he was one of few serving governors with a spotless record, devoid of any suspicions or charges of corruption.^[21] He also belonged to the People's Democratic Movement (PDM) – a powerful political block, founded by his late brother, Shehu Musa Yar'Adua, who was also Obasanjo's vice president during his military rule.

In the presidential election held on 21 April 2007, Yar'Adua won 70% of the votes (24.6 million votes) according to official results released on 23 April. The election was highly controversial. Strongly criticized by observers, as well as the two primary opposition candidates, Muhammadu Buhari of the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) and Atiku Abubakar of the Action Congress (AC), the result was largely rejected as having been rigged in Yar'Adua's favour.^[22]

Cabinet

Yar'Adua's new cabinet was sworn in on 26 July 2007.^[24][25] It included 39 ministers, including two for the ANPP.^[25]

National agenda

Yar'Adua and Indian prime minister Manmohan Singh in October 2007

In August 2007, the administration unveiled a seven-point agenda to be the focal point of the administration's solution to developmental challenges and stated goal of elevating Nigeria to be among the twenty largest economies in the world by 2020:^[26]

• Infrastructure, power and energy
• Food security
• Wealth creation
• Transport
• Land reforms
• Security
• Education

Due to his illness and death, the administration was unable to realise the agenda.^[27] The power sector was not adequately funded, infrastructural deficit was not closed down and the troublesome process of reforming land use regulations hampered a reform of the land tenure law.^[27]

Electoral reforms

Yar'Adua established a presidential electoral reform committee to look into the legal factors, social and political institutions and security issues that affects the quality and credibility of elections in the country and also, to make recommendations on improving the credibility of elections. The reform committee was headed by Mohammed Uwais, a former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Nigeria. Among the recommendations of the committee was constitutional measures to make the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) truly independent, removing some of the activities of INEC with the creation of an electoral commission and a parties registration agency. It also recommended speedy resolution of legal challenges of elections, presumably before the swearing in ceremony of the victor of the seat being challenged.^[28]

Foreign Policy

Condoleezza Rice and Yar'Adua in September 2007

During his tenure as president, Yar'Adua had tried to improve foreign relations with other countries to also help with social justice and national security. While talking with President George W. Bush, he had explained that he would help fight corruption within Nigeria and help grow the economy. Though, this turned out not to be so and instead he weakened foreign relations with other countries. For instance, as more Nigerians engaged in trips abroad and consequently increased interactions with citizens of other states, issues of maltreatment of Nigerians abroad equally escalated in equal proportion. Thus, the period between 2007 and 2010 seemed characterised of an era when globalization heavily impacted Nigeria's foreign relations rather negatively. What appears to give credence to this is the fact that many Nigerians, in an attempt to utilize opportunities offered by globalization, became victims of the integration process. During the administration, incidences against Nigerians in the course of the country's foreign relations with other states were at a high level. It was the same across Africa, into Europe, and Asia. For instance, in May 2008, South Africans unleashed xenophobic attacks on immigrants and many Nigerians suffered grievous loss and distress in the process. As Omenma (2015) puts it, prior to the xenophobic attack, there were a series of systematic and hostile campaigns of calumny against Nigeria and Nigerians including the burgling of the Nigerian embassy in that country, the height of the attack by South Africans.

National Security

Illness

Yar'Adua left Nigeria on 23 November 2009, and was reported to be receiving treatment for pericarditis at a clinic in Saudi Arabia. He was not seen in public again, and his absence created a power vacuum which was usurped by a cabal.^[29] On 22 January 2010, the Supreme Court of Nigeria ruled that the Federal Executive Council (FEC) had fourteen days to decide a resolution on whether Yar'Adua was "incapable of discharging the functions of his office". The ruling also stated that the Federal Executive Council should hear testimony of five doctors, one of whom should be Yar'Adua's personal physician.^[30]

Doctrine of necessity

On 9 February 2010, the Senate controversially used the "doctrine of necessity" to transfer Presidential Powers to Vice President Goodluck Jonathan, and declared him Acting President, with all the accompanying powers, until Yar'Adua returned to full health. The power transfer, considered illegal by some, was described as a "coup without the word" by opposition lawyers and lawmakers. However, there were others who felt the power vacuum would lead to instability and a possible military takeover.^[31]

Health

In 2007, Yar'Adua, who suffered from a kidney condition, challenged his critics to a game of squash in an endeavor to end speculations about his health.^[32] On 6 March 2007, he was flown to Germany for medical reasons, further fomenting rumors about his health. His spokesperson said this was due to stress and quoted Yar'Adua as saying he was fine and would soon be back to campaigning. Another report, which was rejected by Yar'Adua's spokesperson, claims that Yar'Adua collapsed after suffering a possible heart attack.^[33]

Wealth

On 28 June 2007, Yar'Adua publicly revealed his declaration of assets from May (becoming the first Nigerian president to do so), according to which he had ₦856,452,892 (US$5.8 million) in assets, ₦19 million ($0.1 million) of which belonged to his wife. He also had ₦88,793,269.77 ($0.5 million) in liabilities. This disclosure, which fulfilled a pre-election promise he made, was intended to set an example for other Nigerian politicians and discourage corruption.^[18]